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Fmr. Yankee PR Director Rick Cerrone Joins Alex on the Sports Hour · OneLegUpAlex Media

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Well, you know, for my childhood, Derek Jeter was definitely an icon
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of it and I got to know him for years. And here on the
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Sports Hour with Alex Garrett. I don't have you heard me the other night,
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but I was so excited when Derek Jeter got in. I didn't even
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care that he didn't get unanimous. I just was so happy he was in
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for the second year in a row. A Yankee icon is going to Cooperstown.
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And someone who I know him personally around the stadium, Rick S.
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Rohne, the former PR man for the Yankees, joins me. Rick.
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I don't know if you remember me, but I was there with mister Steinbrenner
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for years and you were very nice to me and my dad every time we
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saw you. Alex, I remember you, I remember your dad. Let's
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just say you were unforgettable. So, and you knew Jeter more than my
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dad he did. So give us a few stories here that people may not
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know. Well. Well, first of all, I'm so happy that you
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dove right into Derek Jeter, the man, the player. I've done some
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other interviews and we never even go to Jeter because everybody wants to focus on
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the one voter or the one vote he didn't get, which I really don't
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think is relevant. He went in with ninety nine percent of the vote,
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which is a phenomenal accomplishment well deserved. I mean, Alex, you know,
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I first met Jeter Derek probably the first day of spring training, you
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know, when he arrived over at Legends Field for spring training in ninety six,
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which was my first year. Excuse me, it was his rookie season,
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and the thing that struck me right away about him was that he didn't
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seem like a rookie. He carried himself like a veteran. And I defy
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anyone to show me in all his years with the Yankees where he made a
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mistake on the field, Now he made an error, you know, but
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he didn't make mental mistakes. He was a tremendous leader, you know.
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I mean when I say a tremendous leader. He wasn't that raw raw let's
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go get a kind of player. But you know, he almost willed his
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team to win. He was a winner, as you well know, and
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I think Joe Torrey said it best. You know, defense, even defensively,
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you know, two outs in the ninth, you want the ball hit
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the Jeter. Well, you know, Ricky were the pr manager for the
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Yankees during that height of Jeter's era. So I got to ask you,
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how many requests would you get for him alone during the course of a day.
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Oh well, I don't know if I could give you a number.
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But it's very interesting Alex that you know, he certainly topped the list,
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but you know, we we had it. We were a traveling all Star
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team. I mean, so there were so many people that got requests for
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different things, and one of my jobs was to screen them and knowing things
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that he might not be comfortable doing, knowing things that you know, we
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as the Yankees would would not want him to do. You know, we
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tried to accommodate everybody, not everyone was Sports Illustrated or the Today Show or
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sixty Minutes or whoever you'd want to put in the upper restaurant. And you
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try to take care of the little guy too, And he did that.
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I don't remember Derek ever saying no, no, I'm like, you know,
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no, I don't want to do that. I don't remember that.
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And here's the thing that stands out, aside from the typical traditional media request
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that you know, players would get I mean, you know, you know
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this in the dugout. You know, we're kids all the time, whether
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they're Make a Wish kids, kids of sponsors, and he was so good
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with all of them, with whatever it had to do. And he never
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said no to anything like that, meeting a troubled kid or a kid from
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a troubled family, or you know, someone that was having an issue or
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you know, we got these requests a tremendous amount of time, especially after
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nine to eleven. And you know, he stepped up to one situation in
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particular that I was involved in with a little nine year old girl. And
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you know, everybody did their thing, everybody did what was expected of them.
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But the great thing about Derek Alex was that he always did more than
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was expected. That's what made him special, and that is so true.
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He went beyond them and above didn't he. Yeah, and you know that
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yourself. But like you know, I'll tell you a story real quick about
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a young lady who was eight years old in two thousand and two, nine
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years old, and you know the family wanted to bring her to spring training
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because her father was tragically killed on nine to eleven. And you know,
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of course we said yes, and she wanted to meet Derek Jeter, and
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you know, I told Derek, and of course he says, yeah,
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no problem, he knew what it was. You didn't have to remind him.
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So we brought her down. When she arrived at Legends Field and she's
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sitting in the first row of an empty ballpark, next to the dugout,
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and I think I'm going to be the good pr guy and kind of walk
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over to Derek who's on the field on his back stretching with you know,
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with those rubber bands and everybody, and I kind of walked so she can't
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see, and I say, you know, you know, not moving my
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lips, Derek, the little girl that you're going to meet is sitting over
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there, you know, with the blue Yankee jacket on and the Yankee at
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So whenever you're done, you know that's who she is. So he can
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kind of acknowledge her without having to be well. I don't even get two
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feet away from him, and he yells out from behind me, Hey,
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Kate, get over here. You're late. We're stretching. Come on,
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let's go. She runs out on the field. They lift her over the
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stands, she runs out, she get down here, and he gives her
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a rubber band and now, hey, this is Mariano, and this is
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Roger, this is Warre, and it was it was an unbelievable experience.
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And then he sits with her and he talks to her and he says to
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her, do you go to Yankee games? Oh? Yeah, I go
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all the time. And start kind of tearing up because she went with her
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dad, and he goes, well, listen, I don't want you to
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ever come to a Yankee game and not let me know you're there. So
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you tell mister Sharone here when you're coming, and he'll let me know,
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and I'll know you're there, and I'll try to see you if I can.
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And you know, that's what happened. And other people did what was
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expected. He always did more than was expected. Did he how be making
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your job easy in a way as a PR manager for the bit the best
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franchise? Well yeah, because other people, you know, there were others
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that were a little higher maintenance, so you could even out a little bit.
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But I'll tell you a funny thing, Alice. People ask me all
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the time when they know why you worked with the Yankees at that time.
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You know, tell me about Tark Cheeter, and I would kid and I'd
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say, well, he really had no use for me. And they say,
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whoa whoahoa, you didn't get along with them. I said, no,
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we got along great, we're friends. But he didn't need the services
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of what I did. You know, he never really needed my counsel.
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He never needed me to remind him. I mean that was kind of a
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funny thing because you know, a guy who's doing the Sunday Conversation, you
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know, and the visitors the football locker room at the Metrodome in Minnesota at
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three o'clock, Well, you know, you put a reminder there, you
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call the guy at the hotel, leave him a message. You didn't need
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to do that with Derek, and he didn't want you to do that.
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I mean, was he was so responsible? I mean he was. I
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mean, Alex, think about it. I'm the pr director of the Yankees
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and one of my players is Derek Jeter. Does it get better than that?
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Well? Do you miss it now? Do you wish you were back
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here now that he's back in the hall, or what's life been like for
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you after the ach? Well? No, you know, yeah, you
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miss certain things about it, but you know, I'm the editor in chief
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of Baseball Digest. How great is that to me? You know? You
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know, I mean, so you know, I went from one dream job.
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You know, when I was a kid and I was in high school.
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I told my high school guidance counselor when he asked me, what do
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you see yourself doing when you were a grown up? Because I was literally
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flunking out of school, and I say, well, that's easy. I'm
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the public relations director of the New York Yankees. I mean, that was
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my dream since I was like fourteen. But if he had said to me,
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okay, well let's just say, what's your fallback plan? What's the
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second thing you'd wanted me? I might have said to him, I'm the
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editor of Baseball Digest. So I've achieved both of those things, and it's
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quite both of them were tremendous. There's only been four editors in chief of
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Baseball Digest, and it's seventy nine year history, so it's something you take
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very seriously. And Bob, are you now going to write an article in
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Baseball Digest? Can people look forward to that from you? Because well,
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yeah, I have a column in every issue, which is called first pitch,
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and I just completely redid my first pitch for the preview issue, which
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comes out March fifth, so that I can address the cheating scandal, and
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I'll push the one that I wrote for this one, which I think is
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really good to the May June issue. So really we're really looking forward to
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that. So the Daily News had it right. They said, you know,
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this is the time where Derek can really bring positivity back in the sport.
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And I think this election couldn't have come at a better time, wouldn't
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you agree with everything happening last week. Totally different mindset on baseball now with
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Jeter in the Hall. The voting couldn't have happened at a better time,
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or the announcement couldn't have Well, the timing of the voting was great,
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just as the timing of the timing of the announcement of the penalties for the
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cheating scandal was perfect. For Bill O'Brien, the coach of the Houston Texans,
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Baseball really needs this, and they're going to need more. They're going
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to need a lot of Derek Jeters. They're going to need players to become
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Derek Jeters and step up because you know this is an ugly stain on the
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game, which I think it will overcome, but it's going to take a
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lot of work, and it's going to take further deterrence, you know,
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from Major League Baseball. Well, and this also in the back of my
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mind, I'm just thinking about mister Steinbrener. It's the ten years since he
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passed, and I mean to honor him in this way because he loved Derek
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and he loved the Yankees, but more importantly, he had like a father
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son relasion with Derek. He's got to be smiling from up above right now.
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Yeah, I'll tell you a quick funny story about Derek Jeter and George
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Steinbrenner, because there was a time in the early two thousands, I want
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to say, two thousand and three where mister Steinbrenner gave an interview on the
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thirtieth anniversary of him owning the ball club, and he was he said some
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things about Derek that I know rubbed Derek the wrong way, talked about him
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being out for five in the morning or something like that, which you know,
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I think he wished he didn't say those things. But we then got
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a call shortly after that. The call came to me, I don't know
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why from an ad agency who for Visa that wanted to do this commercial where
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they would you know, And he's explaining this commercial to me, you know,
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he's going on about Derek, and then Derek shows his card and the
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next thing you know, they're dancing on a congo line. I'm like,
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yeah, that's got note. Neither one of them would want anything to do
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with that. But I said, because my responsibility was mister Steinbrener, that's
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why they called the Yankees. I passed it on to the person that does
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mister Steinberner's personal public relations, a man named Howard Rubinstein, who was the
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Babe Ruth of PR people, and Howard said the same thing to me,
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I don't see him doing so the next thing I know, there they did
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it. Hey can I play an iconic spot? I've got the audio lined
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up if you want me to play it just so, well, you don't
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have to. It's your show, Alex, so you do what you want.
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But but I just thought, Wow, what I never saw thought I
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would see is Garrett Cheeter and George Steinbrenner in a on TV in a conga
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line. Well, let me play the quick audio because it is a great
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commercial, and it's just the wording of it. The visual is great,
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but the audio is great too. Go ahead, come on in, Derek.
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I thought we'd discussed this thing and has it all worked out. You're
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our starting shortstop. How can you possibly afford to spend two nights dancing,
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two nights eating out, and three nights just carousing with your friends all kind
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of enjoy the New York night life. Bring your visa card because ours a
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cheetah in the Broom Street bar. Don't take American Express recent it's everywhere you
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rick. That was one of the best commercials I've ever seen on TV.
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There you go, and you know what do I know? I'm sitting there
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thinking this will never happen, but you know, just hearing his voice there
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and thinking about him saying similar things to me, like explain this, How
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do you explain? You know? Well, yeah, and I mean I
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have a ton of stories obviously, because mister s took my dad I under
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the wing, and that's how I got to know you as well. But
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you know, he went, he had us up in Boston for a game
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and they lost. Benitas gave up the game winner and Fenway and he jokingly
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fired me in his suite. I mean, the guy had a lot of
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humor to him on a side that no one saw, not even you know,
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the media didn't always see it that way. Well, the thing that
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I'm so indebted to him, you know, he never fired me, right,
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and you know, and that you can't say that about many of the
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twelve that preceded me during mister Steinbrier's tenor. But there were many times I
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will tell you, Alex, that he would have had every right to fire
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me, but he let you go back at him, you know, and
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he wanted that. He did not want yes men right. And there were
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many times that I would say to him. I would say to things like,
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you know, at certain times, I can't let you do that,
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you know, I mean, but I would always preface it because I looked
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at him very quickly. When I was publishing Baseball Magazine back in nineteen seventy
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seven and the Yankees won the World Series, he got an interview for the
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Q and A in Baseball Magazine with mister Steinbrenner that we did in November of
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nineteen seventy seven, and one of the questions I asked him was about his
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management style that you know, do you manage people differently? Do you have
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to manage Billy Martin differently than then you manage Reggie Jackson? You know.
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And I'll never forget what he said to me, he said, Michael,
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I'm really I don't think he knew myny. He said, Rick, He
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said, there are two types of leaders. Some are patents and Summer Eisenhowers,
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and I'm a patent. He really was the two great World War two
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generals with very different personalities and very different managerial styles. Now, remember,
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I want this job. You know, I'm not the pr director of the
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Yankees in nineteen seventy seven, but I still aspired to be someday. And
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as I left his office and left the stadium and got in my car,
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I remember thinking myself, that's how I will play this if I ever get
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this job. He's general patent and I'm a corporal. And that's probably how
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it was. Always, Sir. I always answered the phone when I picked
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it up, and you know, my assistant would say, mister Steinvener's on
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the phone, and I pick it up, and I would say, yes,
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sir, and I start everything with sir, you know, sir,
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if I may sir. You know that's a great idea, Sir, I
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can't let you do that. Well, let me ask you, how did
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you when he did find himself in the headlines, which was a lot during
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those years, how did you combat that? How did you put him back
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on track? So to speak? Like? What did you do when you
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saw he was in the headline? Well, there's different situations. I mean
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sometimes you try to avoid getting him in the headlines. You know that,
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you know, Alex. People ask me all the time, Rick, what's
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the greatest credit, the biggest crisis you ever averted with the Yankees? And
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I say to them, well, if I tell you, then I didn't
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avert it because it's become public. But there was one time, and he
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was adamant about this that this was nineteen ninety six and Ruben Sierra made some
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remarks about Joe Torri that were backstage headlines. Now we're on the West coast,
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So the day that the headlines come out, we go to the ballpark
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that afternoon, right and you know, they iron this out, Ruben apologizes.
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It's basically the next day's paper is going to be Ruben apologizing to Joe.
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Well, mister Steinriner calls me that day and he's going off and he
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reads this statement to me that he wants me to give to the media when
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I get to the ballpark about we will not tolerate this behavior from the who
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does he think he is not? And I'm trying to tell him. I
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said, it's over, We've fixed it. It's tomorrow's paper is going to
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be Ruben's. If you do this, you're going to and this one on
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for ten minutes, and finally he said to me, so, let me
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get this straight. What you're saying to me is I should do nothing.
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I said, that's what I'm saying. And then he said what he said
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so many times, so many times, right, but at this time,
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remember this is my first couple of months on the job. He said to
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me, Okay, you better be right. Yeah, And he would say
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that to almost everybody in his in his circle. Yeah. So, well,
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one other guy that really loved Derek, really loved and who really loved
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him. We're talking about patching up relations now. And it happened during the
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height of the nineties. Yogi Berra and he loved Derek, and I'm sure
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he got some Yogi Derek stories, but also tell us what that was,
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like, the patching up of mister Steinbrener and Yogi, because that was a
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pretty famous moment during the Jeter era. Well, it really was. And
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I remember that we saw Yogi at Say Stadium in an interleague game, and
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it was just like that's how you saw Yogi. It was away from the
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stadium. And I mean I probably met Yogi two times prior to his reconciliation
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with the Yankees. And you know, you know, the credit goes to
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Susan Waldman, who you know wanted you know, she called mister Steinbrenner something
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related to like Yogi, like wanting him to go do this interview or something.
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I don't eve think it was about doing an interview, but she said
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something like I want to talk to you about Yogi and he said, what's
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wrong. Well, so she got from that that he so much wanted to
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patch things up and apologize that she invited him to go out for their broadcast,
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you know, because the museum had just opened out in Montclair, New
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Jersey. So I knew she did that, and she told me about it,
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and I said, well, let's let's see what happened. So he
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called me in my office and he goes, now, now, Susan Wahlman,
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she wants me to do this and this and this, And I said,
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yeah, I think it's a great idea. I'll never forget what he
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said. He said, well, you're just saying that because Yogi's your friend.
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I said, mister Steimer, and I've met the man twice in my
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life. I said, you know, thanks for the compliment, but I'm
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saying that because I think it's the right thing for you to do, right,
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And he said, all right, well we'll do. But you're going
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with me. So you planned to be however, we were going to get
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out there, you know, make arrangements. He goes, you're going with
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me. I'm not saying you're coming back, but you're going with me.
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So we went out there very publicized, that meaning in Marcter State. Well,
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I will tell you that we picked him up at Newark Airport, his
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two drivers and me, and we picked him up at the airport. And
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I will tell you that the ride from Newark Airport, the forty minutes or
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however it was to get to Montclair from Newark Airport, I never saw him
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so nervous. I never saw him, you know, he was really concerned
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about how this was going to go. He was quiet. And then we
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got there and Yogi, you know, is at the door, and first
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words out of Yogi's mouth, you're late. And then George, why I
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came all the way from Turmoru. And they started talking, and Dale Beara,
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Yogi's son, said hey, before we go any further, go in
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this room. And they went in the room and they closed the door.
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I was not in the room, but obviously mister Steinbrenner apologized for the way
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Yogi's firing was handled. And when they came out, all was right with
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the world. They went on fan with Susan. It's been played many,
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many times, and Yogi became part of the furniture, you know, part
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of the family. You know, you walk in the clubhouse. I'll tell
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you an unbelievable story. Tell me. We go to Japan in two thousand
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and four, right, and Yogi comes with us. Okay, so,
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and they tell you don't sleep on the plane because you won't sleep, you
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know, to keep your normal eye. Try going eighteen hours and not sleeping
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on a plane. So we get to the hotel, we get our keys,
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we get our little rooms that were very everything is smaller in Japan.
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And you know, I must have woke up about six o'clock six and all
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of a sudden, so I'm up. Is a knock at the door.
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Okay, I'm like, who's knocking at the door. It's seven o'clock in
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the morning, right, and it's Yogi in his pajamas, you know,
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with slippers on a pajamas. Here's your newspaper. I want to have breakfast,
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I'm like, So, you know, Yogi would go to spring training
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every year. He'd come to at least one or two games per homestand and
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he would get there at two o'clock in the afternoon for a night game.
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He's the first one in the clubhouse. And then he of course extended the
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Yankee family tu Montclair. He would have all these events at the Yogi Bear
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Museum. And you know, there's there's going back to Jeter for a second.
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There's this iconic image of Yogi and him on the bench. I mean,
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he was so en messed and you had to love the guy. You
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had to love well, you know, Yogi was one of the most wonderful
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kind you know, down to earth people. You know, it's funny you
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know, and I want to get this in because it's about Derek. He
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always called everybody every man was sir, even at his press conference, and
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every woman he met was ma'am right, Yogi, it was Yogi was.
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Every woman was dear, yes, dear, thank you, dear. You
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know that to the waitress, right. And I took Yogi out to dinner
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every spring. We would have dinner and maybe Ron Gidrey would come or Willie
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Randolph or whatever. And one time we're sitting at a steakhouse and you know,
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everybody's, oh, Jog you there looking at him, and we're sitting
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at the table and the woman goes, would you like some water? And
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you know she pours the water and it's cold because you could see it through
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glasses already starting to you know, show that it's cool, and uhh.
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Yogi looks at the woman and probably says the two words of Spanish. He
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knows oh, he goes Aguofria and the woman is like, I'm sorry,
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I don't speak Spanish. Sir had no idea. It was Yogi Bara so
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and you know he was. He also signed my book a wit. I
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mean, we I got no him as well. What a guy to be
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around. Now. One other thing you can't forget what the Jeter era was
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his John Sterling. I mean, he his calls really helped, you know,
24:10
got Derek's name out there, Vegetarian swing and whatnot. So would you
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say that Sterling's calls played a role into the phenomenon of Jeter. I just
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think John is the sound John and Michael and Susan are the soundtracks of that
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era. And you know, yeah, sure it added something to the Jetarian
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and you know, you know all of them for everybody. You know,
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Burn, Baby Burn, and you know, you know the John Bino and
24:41
I mean, and you know, it's very appropriate that you bring up John
24:45
because on Saturday at the Sheridan Times Square at the annual, the ninety seventh
24:52
Annual Baseball Writers Awards dinner, he is getting the Casey Stengele you could look
24:57
it up award because of his incredible streak. And you know, you take
25:02
out the two games he missed in nineteen eighty nine, probably would go back
25:07
back into Atlanta to Atlanta, but it's almost six six thousand consecutive games that
25:11
he did, so, I mean, his streak is longer than Garrig's and
25:17
Ripkins combined and you know, so you know, John means a lot to
25:22
that that whole era. But the funny thing too is some of the big
25:26
calls for Jeter Michael they came in Michael Kay's innings, right, you know,
25:33
like like the home run in the World Series against the Diamondbacks where Michael
25:41
dubbed him mister November. It's kind of funny, but you know, Michael
25:47
was on the I think Michael, I know, Michael did a play by
25:51
play of the of the flip play. Well. Yeah, so it's kind
25:55
of funny that Jeter did a lot of things at Michael's innings. Well,
25:57
and of course, Junior's been talking about that flip play for the first time
26:03
in what twenty nineteen years now, he's actually going up about it. But
26:07
no, John and Michael and Susan, they're all long standing. And I
26:11
cannot let you go without asking this because I congratulations of John on the award,
26:17
because there are moments for mister Steinbrenner where he actually showed a lot of
26:21
emotion. Remember you, I don't know if you were in the clubhouse,
26:23
I think you were when they won and he was in tears getting that World
26:26
Series trophy. Those were some big moments in Yankee history. Oh yeah,
26:33
and yeah, he got emotional after you know, wins like getting that trophy
26:40
and everything, some more than others. But I will tell you something,
26:42
the next day, it's like it never happened. I'm sure, because he
26:45
was on to the next one. He was on to the next one,
26:49
and you didn't you didn't get a lot of time to celebrate it because it
26:53
was over. We had our party, let's get let's get to work on
26:56
nineteen ninety nine, you know, right, and then two thousand and whatnot.
27:00
And by the way, one other time he did cry on TV was
27:04
when the fans I think it was Opening Day four or five, we're sharing
27:08
him and I don't think anybody expected that flow of emotion from him back in
27:14
those days. But there it was. Well, you know, he he
27:18
changed over the years as he aged. And also remember he had the illness
27:25
that I think was in two thousand and three or four, and that kind
27:27
of mellowed him, made it more emotional going forward. But again it listen,
27:36
he was just you know, I mean, he was George Steinbrenner,
27:41
and there were you know, it was tough, I mean, but if
27:42
it was easier. Everybody would do it. He was challenging. You know,
27:49
you drive to work, and if you're out of pocket for twenty minutes
27:53
getting a haircut on the way to work, you'd hope he doesn't call.
27:56
But you know what, I can count on one hand the times he called
28:00
me at home in eleven years. I mean, I really can. And
28:04
you know, I remember one time he called me at like seven fifteen in
28:08
the morning. My wife answered the phone and said, is mister Steinbrender.
28:14
But it was there was a legitimate reason for him to be calling me because
28:18
we're there's something that was going on that day and he had. And then
28:21
when he's hanging up, he said, oh, oh, oh, you
28:22
know, please tell your wife, I'm sorry to call so early. Oh
28:26
that, I'm sure. And Reine Grower, Reinne Groen's doing the whole Batboy.
28:30
I don't if you're familiar with all of this, but he's doing his
28:33
great show. We were just at Fort Hamilton. He's really carrying the legacy.
28:36
It sounds like you are as well. Through the Baseball Digest and now
28:40
that you mentioned in two thousand and four you had to be at the dive
28:42
game right where Jeter gets cut up on my straight What was that like from
28:47
that, you know, from It's funny, go for it. It's funny
28:51
Alex that I remember that game obviously where I think that was the S training
28:56
game that flarerty one. But my son remind me because I had forgotten this.
29:02
My son and his mother, my wife and my son Corey, who
29:04
now works in baseball and with the Padres in their Triple A affiliate in al
29:10
Paso. They were away. They went away for the week or the weekend
29:15
or whatever, and it just happened to be that he called on my cell
29:19
phone, you know, at about that time. So I literally did play
29:25
by play of that play for my son. My son always reminds me,
29:30
you don't on the phone. It was like I was listening to it on
29:33
the radio. You think he tis he just over to the stands and did
29:37
you get anything? Know? It was it was like it stead you did
29:38
play by play for me. So I wish I had a recording that'd be
29:41
fun to get. Well, we don't have a recording office, but that's
29:45
uh no. And that game was so dramatic. I remember they were pushing
29:49
people around on the infield. Joe had to make all these maneuvers. It
29:52
was a crazy, crazy X running game. But that was Derek And one
29:57
of the things that nobody really remind members or they forget. He was injured
30:02
in two thousand and three and had to make a tremendous recovery from that.
30:06
And it sounds like you were there through that too. So what was that
30:08
like when he was injured? Was he was he How was his mood whenever
30:12
he was not able to play? You know, that's a great question,
30:18
but I really don't remember. I like where he was at that. I
30:23
remember it happening, and it was it was terrible. It was opening day
30:27
in Toronto, Fanto and I almost was not on the trip. I was
30:33
almost not on the trip because there was this controversy with the YES network not
30:38
being available on cable vision, and I had helped him through something and he
30:45
liked, you know, he said, you know, I can't I can't
30:48
have you off with the team until this is resolved, so you just stay
30:52
down here with me in Tampa. And I'm like, are you kidding me?
30:56
I mean, so it was literally the day we were leaving spring training
31:02
after the game, and I don't know what to do, and the traveling
31:07
secretary said, well, leave a bag. We pack a bag for Toronto.
31:10
We'll put it on the truck. If you don't go, I'll take
31:12
it off and just have enough, you know, just keep you in Tampa.
31:17
So I happened to see mister Steinrenter right before the first pitch of the
31:22
game, and he happened. He set it up. He said, you
31:26
know, so how we look at everything good, were ready to go?
31:29
I said, no, I'm actually very concerned. He said, why,
31:33
what's wrong? I said, well, if I told you that Roger Clemens
31:36
wasn't going to, you know, to Toronto with the ball club, would
31:41
you be concerned? He goes, what do you mean, what's wrong with
31:44
Clemens? He's our starting pitcher. And I said, no, there's nothing
31:47
wrong with Roger, but you're not sending me. And I'm your starting pr
31:52
director. I said, and you've got this whole new venture you started with
31:56
a Decie met Sue where we're going to have fifty sixty extra members of the
31:59
media, and you're going to keep me on the bench here in Tampa.
32:02
And he said, just keep your phone on and you walked away. So
32:08
and I never heard another word about the Yes Network. Controversy again. So
32:13
wow. I think that was just one of those spur of the moment things
32:15
that he did. I'm honored that he would think enough of me to think
32:21
that I'm going to make some difference. But there really was There really was
32:24
no need for me to be there, and I think he understood that.
32:28
And luckily I ran into him and he asked me that question. How we
32:31
look and we okay, everything good and well Flip and Flip still runs the
32:37
Yes Network, so that's great. He sure does. Yep. We just
32:39
saw across the town. If you have a second, as this conversation keeps
32:44
going and all these questions pop up, we saw across town the Mets are
32:46
now being sold. But I think the Steinbrunners will keep this in the family,
32:52
don't you agree? Well, I mean, you never know what's going
32:54
to happen, but I think that's their plan and they've had it now for
32:58
ten years after miss steime Erunners passing, and they're obviously very into it and
33:02
very committed. So you know, I think it's going to get really interesting
33:06
in the next couple of years as Steve Cohen takes over the Mets. You
33:09
know, obviously they're going to spend a lot more money. And I think
33:14
it's just great for baseball. It's great for the city of New York.
33:16
As mister Steinbrener would always say, it's great for the city of New York.
33:20
So we'll see what happens. And I think that. And they love
33:22
this game. The stime Runners do just smart before father, and it's fun
33:27
to see that. Actually, so will we will we be seeing you up
33:30
in Cooperstown this summer with Derek. Were you up there for Mo as well?
33:34
I was not. I was not, only because I teach in the
33:37
summers. It's tough to get away. But we'll see what happens. And
33:43
I did see him yesterday. I did go to the press conference. I
33:45
got to spend a couple of seconds, got a nice hug and gave him
33:49
my congratulations. And as I did Mo last year, I spent some time
33:53
last year at Mo's house because we did our Q and A with mar which
33:57
I did with Mariano Rivera, and I hope to have one with Derek as
34:00
well. And by the way, Rick, please come back, because I
34:04
love this conversation. I love reconnecting. It's been so long. It's all
34:07
you have to do is call? All right? And by the way,
34:09
this is Rix s Aeron, the PR director, not the catcher. I
34:13
just want people to know that because it sounds like you've been getting confused on
34:16
you're I'm going to finish. I'm going to finish with a great story for
34:21
you. So my son coming. You know there was a catcher, Rick
34:23
Sarone, who went on to own the Newark Bears and was one of our
34:27
broadcasters. How about that. The PR guy is Rick Sarone and one of
34:30
your broadcasters is Rick Sarone. So my son comes home for Christmas, he
34:34
goes, hey, Dad, by the way, did you know that Rick
34:37
Sarone's wife's name is Karen, which is what my wife's name is. So
34:42
we google Rick Sarone and these pictures come up of Rick on a red carpet,
34:46
or Rick at the golf outing, and there he is Rick Saron with
34:51
wife Karen. I'm like, this is not possible because when I had last
34:55
talked to Rick, I didn't even know he was still you know, he
34:59
was once married, but he was single like the last So I called him.
35:04
Wow, I called him up and he and he says, what's up?
35:07
I said, you know, he calls me our squared R squared?
35:08
What's going on? I said, is your wife's name Karen? He goes,
35:14
no, that's your wife. Oh my goodness, gracious, well that
35:20
is a that's a funny story. So what was the resolution to that?
35:22
What ended up happening? Well, what could happen? It was everything you
35:27
see on Google or whatever that Rick Cerone's wife with wife Karen. It's really
35:32
girlfriend Franka. So somebody got it wrong. But I said to my wife,
35:37
I said, see you don't know people know who you are. So
35:40
there you go. Hey, Rix, my wife was in baseball before I
35:44
was, so she you know, you know she she's got a legacy as
35:50
well. Well, Rick, thank you for this great conversation. And I'm
35:52
sorry that other podcast or interviewers are saying, hey, what happened in the
35:55
one vote? We don't care you and I don't care jeers in the hall.
35:59
That what matters tonight and the rest of the summer. So thank you.
36:04
No, Alex, I remember many years ago there and I will not
36:07
name the person, but there was a writer who had a ballot. Now
36:12
this writer, former writer, would not have a ballot today because you've got
36:16
to actively be covering the game right. But years ago, this writer,
36:22
because he had a gold card, he got a Hall of Fame ballot every
36:27
year, and for a couple of years he'd always take pride in showing me
36:30
his ballot. Okay, okay. One year he shows me the ballot and
36:36
I looked down and look at his ballot and I'm like, you didn't vote
36:39
for Nolan Ryan. And he goes, of course, I voted for Nolan
36:44
Ryan. Now he's about the mail is ballot in. I said, well,
36:46
you didn't put it, Oh my goodness. So he fixed it in
36:51
the ballot in. So I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility that
36:55
there's three hundred ninety seven people that send in a ballot and then all think
37:00
they voted for Derek Cheater. Maybe you're right about that one. So Rick,
37:06
thank you for again joining me on the Sports Hour portion. As you
37:08
can tell, mister Steinbrenner's kindness to my dad and I have really got me
37:13
to this point and you were part of that. So thank you for coming
37:16
back. It's wonderful to reconnect with you. Alex. You were a special
37:20
person, as was your dad, and you know, it's just great to
37:24
reconnect with you, and we'll have you back on for sure. I'm Alex.
37:29
I'm Alex Garrett Sports Hour Edition Tonight. Thanks for joining us.